Texas Rangers Veteran Free Agent Reliever Garnering Interest From New York Yankees

A Texas Rangers veteran relief pitcher has been linked to the New York Yankees.

Sep 12, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Texas Rangers relief pitcher Andrew Chafin (59) pitches to the Seattle Mariners during the fifth inning at T-Mobile Park. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers have revamped their bullpen this offseason, putting an emphasis on improving their relief pitching depth.

Out of their seven free agent signings, four of them were bullpen arms; Chris Martin, Hoby Milner, Shawn Armstrong and Jacob Webb. Two more relievers were added via trade with Robert Garcia and Mason Molina coming over from the Washington Nationals and Milwaukee Brewers, respectively.

There was certainly a need for some bodies since the Rangers had a lot of their players from last year’s bullpen hitting free agency.

Closer Kirby Yates and elite setup man David Robertson both hit the market and remain available. Their age could be a deterrent for teams, but they have each performed at a very high level in recent seasons.

Whoever lands either of them is going to receive a great return on their investment since they likely aren’t going to command a lucrative multi-year deal like some of the other top options available.

All-Star Jeff Hoffman landed a three-year, $30 million deal from the Toronto Blue Jays despite failing physicals with two teams; the Atlanta Braves and Baltimore Orioles.

Another talented Texas reliever who is still looking for work is Andrew Chafin.

The veteran lefty was acquired from the Detroit Tigers ahead of the deadline but was unable to keep up the level of production he had in the first half. That likely played a part in the Rangers opting to decline his $6.5 million player option for 2025.

While the relief pitching market has been slow to develop this winter, the movement could start soon with Spring Training only a month away.

Plenty of teams could still use help in the bullpen, one of whom being the New York Yankees.

According to Brendan Kuty of The Athletic, the team has discussed Chafin as a target to fill their need for a left-handed reliever. He also mentioned Tim Hill, who was with the Yankees in 2024, and Brooks Raley as potential targets.

This isn’t the first time Chafin has been connected to New York.

In late December, Jon Heyman of The New York Post reported the veteran was high on the team’s list of left-handed pitchers to bolster their bullpen.

He would provide a team with solid experience, as he has worked in high-leverage situations or in middle relief.

Chafin is more than just a lefty specialist as well. His splits against right-handed and left-handed batters don’t differ too much. The only drastic difference is in slugging percentage allowed, as lefties struggle considerably more, recording a .317 compared to a .353 by righties.